Lord Brittan denies mishandling abuse claim files

Former Home Secretary Leon Brittan has issued a statement denying that he "mishandled" documents handed to him in 1983 by the late Conservative MP Geoffrey Dickens that contained allegations of organised child sex abuse at Westminster.

I would like to put on record that I welcome the fact that there is now to be an independent review to look at the missing files belonging to the Home Office.

It has been alleged that when I was Home Secretary I failed to deal adequately with the bundle of papers containing allegations of serious sexual impropriety that I received from the late Geoff Dickens MP.

This too is completely without foundation - as evidence from the Home Office's own report supports.